Reopening soon!

Since 2002 I have run my own small business, an online vintage clothing website.

www.sarasattic.co.uk

It has grown from strength to strength, mostly in footfall and in profile. It has received favourable reviews from The Sunday Times Culture, Country Living, RED, Daily Mail, webUser and the Independent's magazine voted it the best UK website and 3rd best vintage shop in 2005. I was thrilled.

A business will only give back £'s relative to the amount of time one can contribute to it.

So as I am stretched very thinly around my family,

my employed work and other commitments, this has in recent months taken a back seat.

Therefore early last summer, I took down all the stock,

recycled the majority in true vintage fashion and

kept the best LBD's (little black dresses) and gems.

During the self induced hiatus I mulled, cogitated and mumbled

about the pro's and con's, the why's and wherefores and on my best list making stationary,

I planned and plotted the future worth of my tiny, mini empire.

I reasoned that with 5 million hits in my best years' trading -which averages out to approx 75,000 unique visitors per year, I could make a better go of it.

Plus I had the stock, the experience to add to the visitors

(a decade of fashion buying and retail management)

so as to not let this drift off and flounder altogether.

So! I decided to specialise in Party wear and frocks,

handbags and a few select accessories.

I also decided to relocate the 'Attic' to the Etsy platform.

I respect and admire their ethos of recycling and eco friendly products,

crafts, handmade and vintage. A perfect new home for the Attic.

I have some lovelies to showcase in the new shop very soon,

in fact as soon as the planned photo shoot -all day Monday- is done and dusted.

The shoot is for a Christmas Vintage Party wear

for the new glossy Carlisle Living magazine.

Etsy formats and creates the pages for each item and so gives me more time,

no longer having to resize crop and edit images in several sizes.

Bringing my customers to my new location,

will benefit Etsy and potentially all the other shops on Etsy.

Drop by soon and see what you think of the new Attic and Etsy itself.

Be very careful, you can indecently while away the hours on Etsy,

at every click you will be in the den of beauty and wonders!

Line Dancing

I watch the wet washing as it billows

 in the blustery breeze

 the shirts soak up the sunlight 

as they haphazardly dance upon their tightrope

so trying to escape their tethered prison

I change my camera settings and I dart amongst 

the furious folds of cotton 

 

 I am compelled to capture these stunning shapes and smiles.

Post of the day at Authorblog, thank you  David!!!

PHOTOSTORY FRIDAY - An Attic day

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

I'm really late with this one, but hope you enjoy it.

Today has been kept clear as an Attic day

This means that all housework is pretty much up to date (?)

dog walked, kids at school, just me at home on a day off from my day job.

Since 2002 my passion for vintage fashion became official

when I opened my vintage clothing website.

Its been a blast to indulge this passion, making the leap from  a hobby into a small business.

I don't invest as much time as I would like, wearing so many hats and since moving home from large rural farmhouse, to urban bungalow bill city dweller. So space and time is at a premium. Most of the stock has been packed up and I haven't done the site justice this year at all.

With the glitzy party season twinkling its bright lights on our doorsteps,

I have been buying new stock over the summer 

and secreting it in all places around the house.

Today was the day I could bring these treasures 

out and I have taken pics of some of the Attic day.

9am - so what have I bought, a real mix!

9.30 - a few tools of the trade

10.30 - getting some good images (a 1980's stunner)

11.00 - it's in the detail (1930's)

11.30 coffee & snack

noon- my current work area/dressing table/laptop

2pm-4pm -weather dried up, so I trimmed garden hedges for two hours 

4pm - s**t kids home already?

5pm -10pm - snatching time to edit/ upload /list on my websites - 

all very time consuming

here 

and 

here

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

Authorblog - a question?

The question is: Do you have an item of clothing that you haven't worn for more than a year?

Well strange you should ask me that, as I'm the owner of an online vintage Boutique or two!!

If you asked my husband that, he would roll his eyes, guffaw or just scream, l'm the bane of his life. I also have my own collection of antique and vintage bags, as well as the stock for the sites, my own website and an Etsy site. Before we moved in November, from a large isolated country farmhouse to urban bungalow-billy land, my bags were displayed in old glass cabinets and were my pride and joy,(after the kids obviously, it is obvious isn't it?). Now it is all sequestered around the house, in secure boxes, under beds, in greenhouses and garages, the house attic and in cupboards and wardrobes in all bedrooms, this is not to mention the vintage clothing ... arghhhh!!!

... and as for my own clothing, I know l have pieces that l havent worn in over a year, cos l always buy a suitable xmas party frock, sometimes vintage sometimes current, and we never go out anywhere to wear them, so I have about 5 in the wardrobe now, that narrowly avoided the skip in November.

here are some of my handbags...and my sites

http://www.sarasattic.co.uk/
http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5576722